Tyranny as a style of government in Ancient Greece did not last long. But it did a lot of damage. It significantly weakened the economic mechanisms and curtailed the social freedoms of the Athenians. Radical measures were needed to deal with the crisis. Solon's laws were precisely the leverage that brought Greece's main city back on the path to economic prosperity.
Backstory
Agriculture was one of the strong productive forces of ancient Attica. But never was it in such a difficult position as in the 7th century. BC. The main cause of the crisis was usury.
According to the laws of Draco, the land was not alienable property, but the peasants could give themselves into slavery for a certain amount of money. If the debtors did not pay their debts on time, they became the owners of the creditors and had to give them a sixth of the harvest. Such debtors were called pelates or hectemors. Rapid impoverishment left the Athens economy in a catastrophic situation.
Short biography
Solon came from a we althylandowning family.
By the time of his election to the national assembly, he had already established himself as a poet and military leader. He laid the foundation for his popularity by winning Fr. Salamis. His elegies, which glorified courage, nobility, disinterestedness, inspired the Athenians for exploits. Solon was an enemy of excess and injustice - it is to him that the principle of "everything in moderation" is attributed. Although he found a person’s desire for prosperity and we alth normal and noble, in one of his early elegies Solon asked the muses to give him material well-being. But at the same time, the poet recognized that such well-being can only be achieved in an honest way, and we alth obtained by deceit and dishonest deeds is a sin that is severely punished by Zeus.
Political activities
In 594, Solon was invited to the post of archon. The purpose of this election was a series of economic and social transformations that could lead the country out of a protracted crisis. According to the laws of ancient Athens, for such profound changes, the consent of the representatives of the national assembly was required - it was it that represented the legislative bodies of the ancient city-state. The future of Greece and his native Athens, the archon saw without tyranny, but at the same time insisted on rigidly following the course of changes that would reset the social and economic sphere of life. These changes were supposed to reset the power and relations in the country. The essence of these changes was represented by the laws of Solon.
Summary of reforms
The most necessary conditiontransformation, according to Solon, was the abolition of debt slavery. The whole process was called seisahteya - release from debt. The essence of the necessary preliminary cases was as follows:
- all slaves who became such under the terms of self-mortgage received freedom;
- land pledged returned to owners;
- all debt obligations cancelled;
- measurement system reformed - all scales and measures in Athens brought to a single standard.
This process caused outrage in all sectors of Athenian society. The poor were angry that they could not divide all the land of the rich, and the we althy landowners were indignant because of the loss of a large part of the property. However, the inhabitants of Athens had no other choice - and they decided to continue to enforce the laws of Solon.
Social Transformation
Athenian society was divided into four categories. The first of them, the most noble, were the Eupatrides - rich hereditary aristocrats of Athens. The second part was made up of horsemen, less well-born aristocrats. In the third, there were zeugites - artisans and merchants, and the fourth, the most extensive, were the poor, but free people of Athens - workers and peasants. The laws of Solon mixed these layers and presented to society their vision of social differences. From now on, only rich people had the right to enter the nobility - eupatrides had to have an income of at least 500 measures of grain per year, a quota of 300 measures of grain was set for horsemen, andZeugites could be considered as such, collecting 200 measures of grain per year. All the rest, regardless of birth, were considered free residents - fetes. So the laws of Solon laid the foundations of democracy in Athens, and from now on, birth in a noble family was no longer considered a privilege, if it was not supported by the necessary capital. In addition, there was a real opportunity to get out of your circle thanks to the passage of the property qualification.
Electoral system
Solon's reforms made possible the next step towards a democratic society. From now on, the people's assembly (areopagus) could consist of representatives of all segments of the population. So for the first time, the poor could decide at the meeting some pressing issues and influence the government. In addition, each member of the people's assembly could be chosen as a judge. True, this position did not promise either great benefits or great influence - the most pressing issues were usually resolved at other councils. Along with the traditional Areopagus, another council began to operate - bule, or council 400. These legislative bodies included representatives of all four estates of ancient Athens - 100 people each. The new laws of Solon in Athens provided the bule with the right to preliminary consideration of all proposals received by the Areopagus. Thus, it was the council of 400 that determined the need for certain transformations in the state, and the Areopagus only approved such a decision by a majority vote. The Areopagus remained in charge of overseeing the observance of the law and the protection of the adopted provisions.
Changes in legislation
Solon was not afraid to make important changes in the legislative field of Athens. He abolished most of the legal norms established by previous tyrants and legitimized a new set of rules that changed relations in the judicial and civil spheres. He left only criminal law unchanged - Draco's cruel laws regarding criminal pen alties for murder, adultery and theft, Solon found sufficient.
Helium
As a concession to the demos, by the decision of Solon, new judicial orans were created, called Helia. The new court included representatives of all classes of Athenian society. This created a completely new legal order, radically different from all previous ones. For the first time in history, the judiciary began to work for all the free people of the country. People could count on free recourse to court without intermediaries, act as a witness or be defendant's lawyers. In addition, they were given the right to pursue their own enemies - previously only representatives of the nobility were allowed to do this. On the other hand, the new judiciary could deprive any person of Athenian citizenship. This could happen to those who did not have a firm civic position during times of unrest and civil strife. People deprived of citizenship were outside the law.
Solon's later life
According to legend, the laws of Solon were written on large wooden boards (kirbs). They were placed on a large shield, which turned around its axis. Over the centuries, the tree has crumbledto dust, so it is still unclear which of the laws were actually established by Solon, and which were only attributed to him. Solon set a ten-year mandatory deadline for his laws and left Athens. According to some reports, the legislator was afraid of the wrath of angry compatriots - after all, he compromised, not justifying the hopes of either the rich or the poor. In one of his elegies, he says that the poor hoped for a complete redistribution of land, and the rich - for the repayment of all debt. In the writings of Plutarch there is one remark attributed to Solon: “It is difficult in great deeds to make everyone happy.”
Under the pretext of expanding trade relations, Solon visited Egypt, Lydia and Cyprus. Fragments of Solon's impressions from visiting the palaces of his contemporary, the legendary Croesus, have survived to this day. But political tension forced him to return to Athens. Several political parties began to fight for power, and Solon tried to resist the establishment of tyranny. In the end, the tyrant Pisistratus seized power in the state. After the victory of his political opponent, Solon remained in Athens, but did not live long. His ashes were scattered on Fr. Salamis.
Meaning of laws
The main thing in the laws of Solon is a successful attempt to equalize the rights of all citizens, putting aside questions of origin and tribal hierarchy. The decisive actions of this politician formed a new political and social order in the state. New criteria for social relations made it possible to form a new political elite - without reference to the old ones.tribal traditions. Despite a good start, Solon's laws failed to completely eradicate the old prejudices. Only 90 years after the Solon reforms, a new politician, Cleisthenes, continued the democratic undertakings of his predecessor. Cleisthenes enjoyed the broad support of the demos, so he was able to finally undermine the dominance of the aristocrats and establish power in the state on a new, democratic basis.
